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US space and aerospace company SpaceX’s pivotal test of its Starship rocket on Wednesday (New Zealand time) stalled when the system abandoned launch just a second before lift-off.
The spacecraft appeared ready to take off until the last possible moment, when the onboard systems presumably detected some kind of error and initiated the automatic abort procedure. SpaceX is likely to try to launch again this week.
SpaceX chief Elon Musk hopes that the starship versions will one day take humans to other planets, particularly Mars. The vessel was to begin that journey with a trip 12.5 kilometers over Boca Chica, Texas, USA.
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The SpaceX spacecraft before the launch attempt.
The rocket prototype must be able to launch and land in a vertical position, to allow successful travel between planets.
SpaceX claims that Starship can perform a “landing flip maneuver that would be a first for a vehicle of this size.”
Last month, Musk gave the rocket a one-in-three chance to stay in one piece.
